Who Should Consider the
Undergraduate Dietetics Program?
Human Biology, Health & Society (HBHS)
Nutritional Sciences - CALS (NS-CALS)
Nutritional Sciences - CHE (NS-CHE)
Clinical Nutrition |
Community Nutrition |
Sports Nutrition |
Food and Nutrition Management |
Child Nutrition |
Nutrition Counseling |
Pre-med |
If these career opportunities interest you, consider becoming a registered dietitian. Job markets demand and many states require that anyone who advises others about nutrition must be a registered dietitian (RD). For pre-med students, completing the dietetics program provides valuable preparation in health and disease and clinical nutrition for practicing medicine and alternative career options in healthcare in addition to medicine.
Dietitians work in a wide variety of settings and some dietitians practice in highly specialized areas. Some key job trends include:
• Increased demand for dietitians in community settings such as in programs that promote maternal and child health, adult fitness and wellness, and diabetes education.
• Increased demand for dietitians with specialized expertise in the management of complex health conditions and diseases such as cancer, AIDS, newborn intensive care, eating disorders, burns, and diabetes.
• Increased demand for dietitians by private industry such as food manufacturers, supermarket chains, food service corporations, software companies, health clubs, and print and broadcast media.
• Academic training and work experience in dietetics opens doors to advancement in many directions including management positions in businesses and not-for-profit organizations, consulting or counseling practices, and opportunities to combine dietetics with other health care specialties.
For examples of current job opportunities in dietetics see Jobs in Dietetics, a job list service for nutrition and dietetic professionals. http://www.jobsindietetics.com/subscribeinfo.htm
How to Become a Registered Dietitian
The Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education (CADE) is the professional organization that sets the requirements for becoming a registered dietitian. To become a registered dietitian, you must:
• Complete the required courses of an academic program that is accredited by the CADE.
• Complete a CADE-accredited dietetic internship program.
Admission to these internship programs is competitive and requires prior completion of an undergraduate degree including the required courses in the didactic program and relevant experience (paid or volunteer) in clinical, community or management settings. The internship programs are located throughout the U.S. and range from 6 to 12 months in duration. Interns receive supervised experience in clinical nutrition, community nutrition, and food and nutrition service management.
• Pass the national registration exam given by the CADE to earn the Registered Dietitian (RD) credential.
The internship program must be completed before taking the exam.
The Dietetics Program at Cornell
The Division of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University offers a CADE accredited Didactic Program in Dietetics. Many of the course requirements in the ADA-approved dietetics program are met by courses required in the Nutritional Sciences and HBHS majors. Students who wish to complete the dietetics program must plan their course schedules carefully to assure that they have all the prerequisites needed for advanced courses.
Summaries of the course requirements for dietetics and the important course sequences for this curriculum are included in the Advising Notes for the Didactic Program in Dietetics, in the blue pages.
Many nutrition majors at Cornell complete the courses required for the dietetics program. These students work closely with their faculty advisers and with the Dietetics Program faculty to prepare their course schedules and to acquire field, work, and research experiences that enhance their classroom learning. Faculty also helps seniors prepare their applications to dietetic internship programs. Acceptance rate of Cornell nutrition seniors into dietetic internships is excellent. Placement of 1995-2006 graduates was at least 95%.
What Will You Learn in The Dietetics Program?
Food Science/Preparation Nutrition
Biochemistry Physiology
Management Social Sciences
Health and Disease
Translating the science of nutrition into healthy food choices for individuals and groups or appropriate nutritional therapy for those with illness requires the integration of many different disciplines. The Dietetics curriculum provides a broad and integrated academic program that is strongly grounded in the physical, biological, and social sciences. The program emphasizes critical thinking, communication skills, quantitative literacy, and the application of theory to practice.
Students begin with basic courses in biology, chemistry, social sciences and introduction to food, nutrition, and health issues and nutrition and the life cycle. In the second year students progress to organic chemistry, physiology and courses that examine the social science aspects of food and nutrition, and the nutritional and physicochemical properties of foods. Advanced courses taken in the junior and senior years apply biochemistry, physiology, and social sciences to problems in clinical nutrition, counseling, communications, public health, and food and nutrition management. Throughout the program students develop skills that will foster personal and professional growth as life-long learners and as leaders and team members in the dietetic profession.
For further information about the undergraduate Dietetics Program, you should contact:
Emily Gier, MBA, RD, CDN, 307 MVR Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-4401. Tel: (607) 255-2638,
email: eg47@cornell.edu.
Specific information about dietetics programs at other universities may be obtained from: The American Dietetic Association, 120 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 2000, Chicago, IL 60606-6995 Telephone: (1-800-877-1600).
For more information, see the following web sites:
ADA Web site: http://www.eatright.org
DNS Web site (Dietetic Program Requirements): Didactic Program in Dietetics
Advising Dietetics Students
The Registered Dietitian (RD) credential conferred by The American Dietetic Association is the credential most widely held by nutrition practitioners and is required for employment in many settings. Even if it is not required for employment, holding this credential will enhance the competitiveness of our graduates in the job market.
Who should complete dietetics requirements?
• Students interested in counseling and/or educating individuals and groups to improve diet and health
• Students interested in teaching in academic settings
• Students who want to enhance their graduate degrees
• Students interested in nutrition and health care.
It is strongly recommended that students complete dietetics requirements unless they know they are going to medical school, desire a career in research or government or do not plan to work in the nutrition field following graduation. Frequently graduates who did not complete dietetics requirements are closed out of employment opportunities they truly desire by lack of the RD credential (even PhD graduates have this experience because many academic positions in nutrition departments require the RD).
The earlier a student begins planning to complete these requirements, the more electives they will be able to preserve in their program. However, even juniors or seniors can complete requirements on time because of availability of many dietetics courses on the web via distance education.
Contact Emily Gier for information regarding undergraduate Dietetic advising.
Tel: 607/255-2638; E-mail: eg47@cornell.edu
Contact Patsy Brannon for information about Cornell’s Dietetic Internship program.
Tel: 607/255-3770; E-mail: pmb22@cornell.edu